I would much rather test than create test documents. Adam White once told me, “If you’re not operating the product, you’re not testing”.

It’s soooooo easy to skip all documentation and dive right in to the testing. It normally results in productive testing and nobody misses the documents. Until…three years later, when the prog makes a little change to a module that hasn’t been tested since. The team says the change is high risk and asks you which tests you executed three year ago and how long it took.

Fair questions. I think we, as testers, should be able to answer. Even the most minimal test documentation (e.g., test fragments written in notepad) should be able to answer those questions.

If we can’t answer relatively quickly, we may want to consider recording better test documentation.

Testing while reporting is helping me to focus. Instead of scribble in my personal notebook, which I would have done anyway, I add a title, date and some simple structure to my test notes and store it online where my team mates have access to it. Doesn't have to be harder than that.

Who am I?

My typical day: get up, maybe hit the gym, drop my kids off at daycare, listen to a podcast or public radio, do not drink coffee (I kicked it), test software or help others test it, break for lunch and a Euro-board game, try to improve the way we test, walk the dog and kids, enjoy a meal with Melissa, an IPA, and a movie/TV show, look forward to a weekend of hanging out with my daughter Josie, son Haakon, and perhaps a woodworking or woodturning project.